5-year-old-girl killed in Henderson shooting by younger brother, grandmother says

A grandmother said her 5-year-old granddaughter died Friday, shot by another child who was playing with a gun inside a Henderson home.

Police said the child who shot the girl was living in the same home along Gary Street in Henderson.

"Her youngest brother got ahold of a gun that was not ... locked up where it needed to be," said the grandmother, who did not want to be named. "It was just out in the open and he got it and shot her by accident."

The grandma, who was not at the scene, said the boy who did the shooting is 3 years old. WRAL News is working to confirm this information with police.

Henderson police said officers arrived around 9:30 a.m. to the home to find a child with a single gunshot wound. According to police, another child in the same home got access to an unsecured gun and fired it, killing the child.

"I'm a little upset because I don't understand why she didn't have that gun put up," the grandmother said. "It should've been more secured."

The names of the children involved were not provided, but scanner traffic indicated a "small child" was shot in the head.

"I know accidents happen, but why wasn't the gun put up?" the grandmother said.

The grandmother said five kids live at the home. She described her 5-year-old granddaughter.

"She was a girlie girl," the grandmother said. "She liked makeup. [She] played with all her siblings.

"Of course, she was a little troublemaker, but I mean, that's all kids. She loved being with her siblings. She loved her mama. She was a good kid."

Sky 5 flew over the scene at Gary Street and Green Street before 11 a.m. Friday. There was a large law enforcement presence, and a neighborhood street was taped off with crime scene tape.

Neighbors were gathered in groups outside talking to authorities. 

One neighbor told WRAL News he was in a house across the street and he heard screaming. He said he saw a mother come outside the house with a child in her arms.

Police said the gun was recovered, and an investigation is ongoing.

Gun safety

The North Carolina Department of Public Safety has on its website how to talk to children about gun safety and rules for safe gun storage.

• Remind them never to touch any gun or bullets.
• Explain the difference between toy guns and real ones.
• Stress the fact that guns can kill and encourage them to make safe decisions.
• Lead by example and demonstrate safe gun practices that your children can observe. 
• Encourage children to tell you if they ever feel unsafe at home or at school.
• Help choose programs, movies and games that are non-violent. Talk to them about violence in television, movies and videogames and prompt them to discuss their feelings.
• Be on the lookout for signs of depression, since suicide is one of the common causes of youth handgun death.
• Check with other parents to find out if they have a gun in their home before your children visit.

The state also recommends keeping guns and ammunition out of reach of children, untrained adults and those who would use them improperly.

Also, the state recommends keeping guns locked in a safe that cannot be easily broken into or taken away.

Here are a few other tips from the state:

• Keep the keys to gun safes and gun locks hidden and out of the reach of those who should not have access to them.
• Store your guns unloaded and with the safety on.
• Keep the guns dry, cleaned and oiled while in storage.
• Store guns and ammunition in a dry cool place and away from heat and fire.

Gun safety resources

Learn about how to store your firearms safely at home and on the go, how to talk to your children about gun safety and how to make sure that schools and playdates are a safe environment from NC S.A.F.E.

Download a free gun safety kit or request a free gun lock from Project Child Safe.

The Durham County Gun Safety Program also offers outreach events, best safety practices and free gun locks on request.

WRAL Documentary: 'UnSafe: North Carolina kids dying from gun violence'

In March 2024, WRAL released its documentary "UnSafe: North Carolina kids dying from gun violence."

The WRAL Documentary Unit set out to uncover why kids in North Carolina are 51% more likely to die from gun violence compared to children in the United States as a whole, according to statistics from the North Carolina Department of Public Safety.

In the documentary, WRAL Investigative Documentary Reporter Cristin Severance and Documentary Photojournalist Dwayne Myers shed light on the devastating impacts of gun violence through the deeply personal story of one family’s loss. The tragic death of 8-year-old Jenesis Dockery, who died four days shy of her 9th birthday after getting shot by her babysitter’s 11 year-old-son, shows just how many lives are destroyed by gun violence.

Fon Dockery, Jenesis' father, knows the pain the Henderson family is facing and what can be done to prevent future similar tragedies.

“Don’t ever think this can’t happen to you," he said. "It wasn’t my daughter's fault that she was killed, but in a situation where there was unpreparedness on the adult side on the other side of things. There was recklessness and irresponsibility on the gun owner on the other end.”

Since his daughter's death, Dockery has advocated for gun safety, to protect children like the 3-year-old girl killed on Friday. 

“At the end of the day, we must address gun safety legislation, or we are going to continue to run into these reckless acts of violence that can be very well prevented," he said.

Dockery added that as a gun owner there is no age that is too young to teach children to be careful around weapons.